Krylan or, as it is also called, flying dog- mammal of the order of the bats. Sometimes they are also called flying foxes. All members of this group of bats, unlike bats, inhabit extremely warm regions: South and West Africa, Australia, South Asia and its islands, and Oceania (in particular, Samoa and the Caroline Islands). Flying dogs live in the Maldives, in Syria, in the south of Japan and in southern Iran. In Russia, this type of animal is completely absent.
Who are these unusual animals?
Даже упоминание о летучих мышах у многих вызывает negative emotions. For many years they were considered vampires, devil's helpers, or simply vile animals. These little animals are unlikely to cause a strong disgust. Moreover, many of their fans believe that a flying dog can be an excellent pet.
Muzzles of the krylan are very much like a dog orfoxes The structure of their skull is in some way similar to the structure of the skull of lower primates. The largest individuals have a wingspan of 150-170 cm. They use them as a blanket in the cold season, in the heat they are used as a fan. The sizes of different species differ significantly, the length ranges from 5 to 40 centimeters. Weight, respectively, varies from 15 to 900 grams. A flying dog has teeth that are adapted only to plant food. The tongue of the fruit bat is covered with papillae, and among small representatives of this species it is also very long. Skeleton has a well-developed sense of smell and vision. The color of a flying dog is usually dark brown, but there are individuals with a greenish, yellowish tinge or white spots on the wings. Males have a brighter color, and females have smaller sizes, and the color is much more modest.
Features of the view
The flying dog has one interesting feature.- she has no tail. Some other species have it, but quite small. And only one representative of the Wings has a luxurious tail, for which he was called the Long-tailed Wing. Flying foxes also have rather unusual legs: the tenacious and long claw and the last phalanx are only present on the first and much less often on the second finger. The intersticeal membrane in many species is underdeveloped. The intestine of a flying dog is 4 times longer than its body.
У животных хорошо развито обоняние, но только some of them use echolocation (in particular, the genus of rousetus) in order to navigate in space. The sounds that emit a wing are also quite original. The Rosetuses, for example, give a voice that looks like a ticking, during takeoff and landing.
Types of flying dogs
Крыланы делятся на множество видов.For example, the Egyptian flying dog. Despite its name, this species is distributed not only in Egypt, but almost throughout the African continent, as well as in Pakistan, in the Middle East, in the Northern part of India. Due to its nice appearance, this type of some people prefer to keep as pets. This is due to the fact that they do not have an unpleasant smell and are easy to learn. In addition to the Egyptian Pteropus, there is also a Komorian, golospinnaya, tentacle, Madagascar, Ugandan flying dog.
Lifestyle
Activity in animals is observed only withthe coming of the night. During the day, they hang on tree branches, where they become similar to a bunch of dried leaves or a strange tropical fruit. They can also rest in caves, rock crevices, in attics and in hollows. However, it is worth noting that the Wings show daily activity. Flying foxes do not fall into hibernation. During the night, the wings can cover a distance of up to 100 km.
Bat dog (bat or fox) -social animal. They live mainly in colonies, which sometimes reach 1000 individuals. It was also noted that when feeding, they expose guards, and in general, in a flock, it is customary to protect and help each other. Palm wings form a group of 10,000 or more individuals that can settle even in large cities.
Offspring
The female gives birth only once a year,producing, as a rule, one baby (very rarely two). An average pregnancy lasts about 115-120 days. During childbirth, the female does not change her traditions and hangs headfirst, and her wings close, forming something like a cradle. First, the newborn falls into the wings, and then crawls to the mother on the breast and clings to the nipple.
Children are born already sighted and covered with wool.Until the cub learns to fly, mother carries it with her. Feeding milk ends approximately when the baby reaches 3 months of age. Grown up individuals are poisoned with the mother on the hunt. To prevent the baby from getting lost, the female gives him a signal with the help of ultrasound. Wings reach sexual maturity at about 9 months.
Food
A flying dog eats such tropicalfruits like mango, avocado, coconut, banana, guava, papaya and others. They break fruits right on the fly or hanging side by side on one leg. They eat up the pulp or drink juice. Small wings feed on pollen or nectar of flowers. In addition to fruit, trumpet-nose flying dogs eat insects as well. Animals also drink water, sometimes even sea water. Thus, they, in all likelihood, compensate for the lack of salt in the consumed food.
Lifespan
Information about the life expectancy of animalsquite scarce. According to some data, it is believed that under natural conditions they can live for about 7-8 years. In captivity, they usually live up to 17–20 years, but there is also a record holder, who is already over 25 years old.
Value for man
Some tribes consume flying fox meatin food. Wing birds significantly help to spread the seeds, and nectar-eating species are able to pollinate plants. Examples of such plants can be a sausage tree and baobab. However, in spite of the significant benefits of volatile dogs, they often damage the plantations of garden trees.
Human activity leads to a gradualreduce the population of volatile dogs. Fewer and less places are left for daytime sleepers. Many countries are concerned about this situation, and therefore carry out many activities to preserve this species.
